Indian Princess try to break water balloon record

Tribe from Newport, Irvine and Huntington Beach will attempt to make it into the Guinness Book of World Records in Irvine Sunday.

April 08, 2011|By Joanna Clay, joanna.clay@latimes.com

On Sunday, local Indian Princess tribes will attempt to make a world record with water balloons while enjoying their annual Family Fun Day.

Naranja Nation craftmaster Ron Semon of Newport Beach has been organizing the event at Mason Regional Park in Irvine since November.

"The whole family and siblings can come out, not just the dads and daughters," he said. "I wanted to do something different last year and I thought of the world record for most people to participate in a water balloon toss."

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There are a lot of checks to be crossed off when it comes to qualifying for the Guinness Book of World Records, he said, but Semon has his bases covered. All he needs now are the willing participants to show up by 1:30 p.m. The entire event is from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

So far, he has about 330 participants from Indian Princess families. He needs at least 250 to attempt a world record.

Semon, who was the chief of his Sun Princesses tribe in 2010, is looking forward to enjoying the event with his two daughters, Maddison, 10, and Charlotte, 6.

The annual event is aimed at getting Indian Princess families together, he said, and spreading word about the YMCA program, which started in 1951.

Naranja Nation is one of the biggest Indian Princess nations in the country and is composed of 17 tribes from Newport Beach, Irvine and Huntington Beach.

Besides the water balloon toss, there will also be a bounce house and bungee attraction. Rudy's Pub & Grill from Newport Beach will be catering the event. There will also be fun activities such as face painting, tie-dye T-shirt making and airbrush tattoos.

The Wyland Foundation, started by the artist and based in Aliso Viejo, will be hosting a mural project for the kids. Semon said that they did a similar mural last year and they bring it along with them on their camping trips.

Inspired by his daughter's past birthday, Semon recruited Huntington Beach-based Prehistoric Pets to come out and show reptiles to the kids.

Indian Princesses, which sprang out of Indian Guides, is based on American Indian culture and teaches how to enjoy the outdoors, be respectful of nature and encourages close ties between parents and children.